Sports Cars and Racers Join Classics in St. Michaels By Dick Cooper. Photography by Angie Myers.
Move over elegant Bugattis, muscle- bound Ferraris are coming to town. Since its inception five years ago, the St. Michaels Concours d’Elegance has only exhibited classic motorcars that dated from 1900 to 1942, a belle époque that featured rare, handcrafted vehicles designed for aristocrats and royals who were as interested in making a fashion statement as they were transportation. This year, the Concours will open the gates to the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum on Sunday, September 25, to leaner, meaner vehicles – sports and racing cars built between World War II and 1960. “We are hoping to appeal to a
different segment of car and reach a broader audience interested in red-blooded racing,” says Concours Chairman David J. North. “The cars will include European Ferraris, Maseratis and American Corvettes.” North says at least 15 of the sports and race cars will be on display along with 50 of the more traditional Concours participants.
The land-based classics will be
surrounded on the Museum docks by vintage watercraft as the Antique and Classic Boat Society, Chesapeake Bay Chapter, will display at least 15 of its mahogany runabouts and larger cruisers during the show. CBMM President Langley R. Shook
says, “This is an important event for St. Michaels as well as the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum. It attracts both local folks and visitors from out of town.” Shook says the mix of stylish
autos and boats are a good blend and offer visitors “eye candy” on land and in the water.
The local Concours d’Elegance
(French for “Parade of Elegance”) traces its history through several other major classic auto shows around the country, including similar events in Pebble Beach, California, Amelia Island, Florida, and Hilton Head, South Carolina, and back to the auto and fashion shows in pre-World War II Paris. Each year, the premier auto chassis and coachbuilders would assemble on the former royal Parisian hunting preserve, the Parc des Princes, to show off their finest to the rich and famous of Europe. At the time, high- end vehicles were custom made, and the mechanics and the coachbuilders only joined their skills when they were commissioned to build a vehicle. It wasn’t until after the War that automakers produced entire vehicles. Many of the car owners who will be attending the local display their prized possessions at several shows a year, recently adding St. Michaels to the circuit. Jim and Marion Caldwell of Toms River, New Jersey, honorary chairs
of this year’s St. Michaels
Concours d’Elegance, are bringing their 1926 Rolls Royce Playboy to town. “We have been to every one of the shows in St. Michaels, and it is a high class event in a wonderful location,” Jim Caldwell says. “I would compare it to Pebble Beach and Amelia Island. I think having it at the Museum is a real asset.”
North says cars will be brought in from
throughout the Mid-Atlantic region by their owners who will start to arrive in St. Michaels on Friday, September 23, when a participants’ golf outing will be held at Harbourtowne Golf Resort. On Saturday, September 24, the Concours cars will
tour Talbot
County roads with a stop for lunch at the Robert Morris Inn in Oxford before returning to the Harbourtowne Resort in St. Michael for a gala dinner. The Concours d’Elegance main event at the Museum runs from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sunday, September 25, and includes a fashion show and judging of the vehicles. This year, food and beverages will be offered on the Museum campus by Harbour Lights Restaurant.
Concours cars will tour Talbot
County roads with a stop for lunch at the Robert Morris Inn in Oxford before returning to the Habourtowne Resort in St. Michael for a gala dinner. North says that an added event this year will be the Youth Car Judging. He said that several high school students will be advised by sponsors from Wye Financial & Trust and Hagerty Classic Insurance on the ins and outs of classic car judging. They will then get a chance to examine the cars and pick their favorites. “We hope it will stimulate interest in the next generation of classic car enthusiasts,” North says.
SL
“We are hoping to appeal to a different segment of car and
reach a broader audience interested in red-blooded racing”
~ Concours Chairman David J. North 54 THE SHORE LIFE 1-4 | subscribe at
theshorelife.net
Only three of these Bugatti’s were ever built until now. Judge North and son, David, built this replica and show it at Concours d’Elegance events throughout the country. Want a better look? Come to the event.
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